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Austin Vernon

What Austin Vernon thinks about energy

@austin-vernon · 42 positions · On ppll ↗

Engineer and investor who writes quantitative posts about how physical industries actually work — chemical plants, geothermal drilling, shipyards, thermal storage and the economics of low-volume manufacturing — at austinvernon.site.

Austin Vernon did not write this page.

We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.

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Only Austin Vernon on energy. See everyone on energy

11 dated positions, 2021 to 2024, in their own words. Our reading of what Austin Vernon has said — not written or endorsed by them.

  1. Our readingLetting generators cover one per cent of the year is what makes an off-grid solar data centre affordable, because the last few gloomy days set the whole array size.

    solardata centers

    Their wordsThe optimal scenario is typically when the generators supply 1% of yearly electricity (shown below).

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 2nd of 9 in this piece

  3. Our readingCooling adds nothing to what a data centre produces, which is why it is the first thing a good design deletes rather than optimises.

    data centersdesign

    Their wordsThe cooling systems in most data centers are energy hogs and contribute no direct value.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 3rd of 9 in this piece

  5. Our readingAn off-grid data centre can delete its uninterruptible power supplies entirely, because the battery bank outside already is one.

    data centersbatteries

    Their wordsDeleting the UPSs could knock off ~$750/kW after considering equipment, installation, and square footage reduction.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 5th of 9 in this piece

  7. Our readingA data centre should be split into independent power blocks fed directly at 1500 volts DC, rather than run through one central distribution system.

    data centers

    Their wordsThe 100-megawatt facility might have ten 10-megawatt blocks served directly by a 1500V DC feeder line without connections to other blocks that would require extra switches and routing.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 6th of 9 in this piece

  9. Our readingOff-grid data centres will win the way electric cars did, by redesigning the machine around the new power source instead of swapping the power source in.

    data centerselectric vehicles

    Their wordsEfforts to improve efficiency and remove vestigial features pay off handsomely.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 8th of 9 in this piece

  11. Our readingNuclear-powered data centres are this decade's hydrogen car: a zero-emissions story incumbents prefer because it changes the least.

    data centers

    Their wordsSome efforts, like nuclear-powered data centers, are reminiscent of Toyota's hydrogen push.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 9th of 9 in this piece

  12. 11 months earlier

  13. by

    Our readingCargo ships can be electrified with a cheap, heavy, low-performance battery, because carrying heavy things cheaply is the one thing ships are good at.

    batteries

    Their wordsShips are great at carrying bulky and heavy stuff with minimal cost and energy usage. We need a battery chemistry that leans into that and sacrifices performance to reduce cost.

    ↗Why Battery Powered Cargo Ships are Compellingaustinvernon.site

  14. 8 months earlier

  15. by

    Our readingCutting drag is worth far more in an electric vehicle than in a combustion one, because carrying the energy is so much more expensive.

    electric vehicles

    Their wordsDrag and tire friction dominate energy expenditure. Engineering effort to improve drag is worth so much more with electric vehicles.

    ↗Electric Trucks are Ready for the Roadaustinvernon.site

  16. 6 months earlier

  17. by

    Our readingElectrifying high-mileage vehicles — trucks and vans — cuts oil demand more than electrifying private cars does.

    electric vehicles

    Their wordsTrucks, vans, and other high mileage vehicles promise to impact oil demand more than EVs.

    ↗The Electric Car's Shrinking Role in Reducing Oil Demandaustinvernon.site 1st of 2 in this piece

  19. by

    Our readingOil demand will fall mainly because petrol cars get driven less, not because they are replaced by electric ones.

    roboticselectric vehicles

    Their wordsFalling consumer oil demand looks much more like driving the Camry 6000 miles per year instead of 12,000 miles rather than a shiny new electric car in every garage or robot taxis swarming everywhere.

    ↗The Electric Car's Shrinking Role in Reducing Oil Demandaustinvernon.site 2nd of 2 in this piece

  20. 5 months earlier

  21. by

    Our readingA small, highly aerodynamic aircraft can beat an airliner on fuel per passenger mile, because drag reduction gets harder as the fuselage grows.

    Their wordsSurprisingly, fuel consumption per passenger mile would be lower in a Celera 500 than in a 737. The larger the fuselage, the harder it is to achieve the same drag reduction.

    ↗Air Travel Doesn't Have to be Terribleaustinvernon.site 1st of 3 in this piece